Strategies and priorities for African agriculture

9 January 2013. IFPRI.  The authors of Strategies and Priorities for African Agriculture: Economywide Perspectives from Country Studies argue that, although the diversity of the region makes generalization difficult, increasing staple-crop production is more likely to reduce poverty than increasing export-crop production. 

This conclusion is based on case studies of ten low-income African countries that reflect varying levels of resource endowments and development stages. The authors also recommend increased, more efficient public investment in agriculture and agricultural markets and propose new directions for future research.

Although regional diversity makes generalization difficult, the study does reach some overall conclusions with practical implications for African policymakers. One important finding is that producing more staple crops such as maize, pulses, and roots and more livestock products tends to reduce poverty further than producing more export crops such as coffee or cut flowers. These and other findings point to promising future policies for African nations.

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